In the High School ministry I serve at we’ve been reading through the Psalms and just finished 119 today on a little thing we call SOTD. It’s so encouraging to see a little over a hundred high schoolers get online to read God’s word and post a comment on what they learned from it, instead of just jumping onto Facebook, Youtube, or any other site. Check it out at:
http://www.churchforhighschoolers.com/!
Anyways back to the main thought for this blog, it’s been awhile but I’m looking forward to what God has planned for this summer in some brainstorms about a blog series on worship and some book reviews from the summer reading list.
But what’s always on the reading list is God’s word, everyday! Today we read Psalm 119:161-176 and verse 165 just jumped out at me. It says,
“Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.”
“Great peace,” that’s something we don’t expect to have in this life, I mean sure people always fight for peace (ironically enough) and search for it through various means but really you can search high and low, striving everyday of your life for peace but never find it unless you are found in Christ. He is called the “Prince of peace,” and we find our source of comfort in Him alone, especially through His word.
How are we doing in reading God’s word?
Are we just skimming though, maybe pondering on it, or not reading it at all? Or are we all about God’s word, hungering for it, studying it, looking for any moment of the day to get back to it?
Peace outside of God’s word is a hopeless endeavor.
In John 14:27 Christ says to his disciples,
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Why does God word bring us peace? It guides us in living upright and righteous lives! Ever notice how the less you sin, the more peace there is among you? The Psalmist does. He connects peace with avoiding stumbling in verse 165.
I love this analogy of walking rightly and not stumbling through loving God’s law, knowing it, studying it and obeying it daily guides us in the way we walk and not to stumble over certain sins.
Last night our church’s college ministry had a beach night and there was a log right in the middle of where everyone was walking or standing around talking. As I went to join in with a group I also ate it tripping over this log, and someone said, “Watch out for the stumbling block!” Unfortunately the warning was post almost eating sand, but someone came and removed the log far away from where anyone could trip on it again.
God’s word opens are eyes to what is causing us to stumble or could potentially cause us to. If someone had warned me before walking over there I would have carefully and thoughtfully walked around it. Proverbs 4:12 says how when our eyes are open to the path before us “when you walk, your step will not be hampered, and if you run, you will not stumble.”
Not only does God’s word point out specific stumbling blocks but warns us that there will be many we are unaware of, if I had kept a close eye on how I was walking I could have kept from almost falling. When you study and begin to better understand God’s word “then you will walk on your way securely, and your foot will not stumble.” (Proverbs 3:23)
Lastly, God word guides us to helping others to see and remove what stumbles them. We need to be helping out our brothers and sister in Christ, like my friend did in removing the log far from the group in pointing out their sins and helping them to remove them from their lives. Following what we read in Galatians 6:1 that says, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”
We need to be in God word to keep a path of walking that is right and pleasing to God, beginning to sin less and turn to guiding others in a path of righteousness. Donald Whitney said,
“Our bodies are inclined to ease, pleasure, gluttony, and sloth. Unless we practice self-control, our bodies will tend to serve evil more than God. We must carefully discipline ourselves in how we “walk” in this world, else we will conform more to its ways rather than to the ways of Christ."
“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.”-Jude 1:24-25
2 comments:
AWESOME blog Ashley! Reading the Bible is crucial if we call ourselves Christians! I know, from experience, that the more I read my Bible, the less I sin, and the less I sin, the more I am at peace! There are many good points in this blog, very informative. Let's study the Bible daily so we can grow in Him!!
"Ever notice how the less you sin, the more peace there is among you?" --> Such a great point! We are filled with God's peace, the less we are prone to sin.
I also think that when we sin less, our love for God grows, and therefore we are more apt to love others more. In which case, our relationships will be more often characterized by peace. (Plus, we won't feel like we have to vindicate ourselves - i.e. Romans 12 so that will make us more peaceful too!)
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